Magnetic catches



Aug. 13, 1963 M. LoEB 3,100,663

' Y MAGNETIC CATCHES Filed March 28, 1962 will!!!l /v z8 /Zj- 3 20 Q INVENTOR. MORI?! 5 L OEB BY Mae@ fk Arrow/EY United States Patent O 3,100,663 MAGNETIC CATCHES Morris Loeb, 697 West End Ave., New York, NY. Filed Mar. 28,1962, Ser. No. 183,089 Claims. (Cl. 292-2515) This invention relates to magnetic catches to cooperate with a magnet attracting plate or the like to anchor the doors of cabinets in closed position.

Among the objects of the present invention it is aimed to provide an improved magnetic catch composed of four parts, namely, a housing, two pole plates, and a magnet connected with one another without the use of screws, rivets, or the like, which two pole plates and magnet, magnetically attracted to one another, interlock the magnet between the two pole plates in a substantially predetermined position, which pole plates are provided with tapered ears to facilita-te seeking a desired position in openings or recesses of said housing, and which housing has inclined walls serving as cams to cooperate with said ears to lind a desired position in the housing.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a four piece magnetic catch of the character aforesaid which maybe produced at a minimum of cost, calling for a minimum number of parts, for a minimum amount of time for assembling, and requiring minimum amount of time for securing the completed catch to a door or housing of a cabinet, or the like.

These and other features, capabilities, and advantages of the present invention will appear from the subjoined detailed description of specific embodiments thereof illustrated in the accompanying `drawings in which FIG. 1 is a plan view of one embodiment of the magnetic catch illustrated in use.

FIG. 2 is a front elevation of the magnetic catch shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a section on the line 3 3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an end view of the magnetic catch shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a front elevation of a modication of the magnetic catch shown in FIG. 1.

tFIG. 6 is an end view of the modification shown in FIG. 5.

In the embodiment shown, the housing 1 composed of one sheet of aluminum or the like lhas two outwardly extending flanges 2 and 3 provided with recesses 4 and 5 respectively, to receive screws or the like for securing the housing l1 to the framework, shelf, or the like of a cabinet. The housing 1 has an upper wall 6, two side walls 8 and 9 substantially perpendicular to the outer wall 6, and two inclined walls 10 and 11 constituting cams and spacing legs, the inclined wall 10 connecting the wall 8 to the flange 2 and the incline-d wall 11 connecting the side wall 9 to the flange 3. 1

In the portion of the housing disposed between the side Walls 8 and 9, the magnet unit 12 is located which consists of two pole plates 13 and 14 composed of a magnet attracting metal such as soft steel or the like, to be attracted by the magnet 15, either real or synthetic. 'The magnet 15 has the conventional opening 16 in it to receive the indented projections 17 and 18. Each pole plate has outwardly extending ears 19 and 20, the ear 19 having the inclined wall 22 and the rounded apex 23, and the ear having the inclined wall 24 and the rounded apex 25. The ears 19 and 20 are provided to extend into the openings 26 in the side walls 8 and 9 of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1.

The inclined edges 22 of the ear 19 and inclined edges 24 of the ear 20 serve as cams to facilitate the insertion 31,100,663 Patented Aug.. 13, 1963 ice of the ears 19 and 20 into the openings 26 when assembling the unit.

In turn, the inner inclined faces of the walls 10 and 11 serve as cams to cooperate with the ears 19 and 20 and facilitate moving the magnetic unit 12 into position between the side walls 8 and 9. The walls 10 and 11 furthermore serve as spacing legs to space the magnetic unit 12 from the framework of the housing or cabinet 1.

Preferably as shown in FIG. 1, the door has a plate 27 composed of a magnet attracting material such as soft steel to cooperate with the projecting edges 28 of the pole plates 13 and 14 respectively.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the side walls 29 and 30, in place of the side walls 8 and 9, have lips 31 struck out from the side walls and extend over the openings 32 in the side walls to receive the ears 19 and 20.

Excellent results have been achieved when the pole plates 13 and 14 and the plate 27 are composed of steel, the magnet 15 is composed of magnetized rubber bonded barium -ferrite or a ceramic bonded substance and the housing 1 is composed either of aluminum, polyethylene, another plastic, or the like.

It is obvious that various changes and modications may be made to the details of construction without departing from the general spirit of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a magnetic catch, the combination of a housing having outwardly extending flanges with openings therein to receive fastening means, a yU-shapcd intermediate section, and outwardly flaring sides between said intermediate section and said ianges having faces to serve as cams and spacing legs, a magnet unit including two pole plates and a magnet disposed between said plates, said. U-shaped section having an upper intermediate portion, said pole plates having central indentations forming inwardly extending projecting portions, said magnet having a central opening to receive the projecting portions of the indentations of said pole plates, there being openings in the side Walls of said U-shaped intermediate section, and second projections at the ends of said pole plates fitting into the openings in said side walls to cooperate with said indentations and said projecting portions to anchor said pole plates and magnet in place.

`2. The combination as set forth in claim 1 in which said side walls have stamped out lips extending over the projections of said pole plates protruding through the openings in sai-d side walls.

'3. The combination as set forth in claim 1 in which said housing is composed of aluminum, said pole plates are composed of steel, and said magnet is composed of a magnetized rubber bonded barium ferrite.

4. The combination as set forth in claim 1, and a structure to which said catch is secure-d by said fastening means, a door for said structure, and a plate sensitive to said magnet on said door to cooperate with Isaid magnet to anchor said door to said structure.

5. The combination as set forth in claim 1 in which said housing is com-posed of polyethylene, said pole plates are composed of steel, and said magnet is composed of a ceramic bonded substance.

References Cited in the file of this; patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,726,110 Teetor Dec. 6, 1955 2,837,366 Loeb June 3, 1958 2,914,818 Pritzert Dec. 1, 1959 3,050,324 Faber Aug. 21, 1962 3,057,650 Ahlgren Oct. 9, 1962 

1. IN A MAGNETIC CATCH, THE COMBINATION OF A HOUSING HAVING OUTWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGES WITH OPENINGS THEREIN TO RECEIVE FASTENING MEANS, A U-SHAPED INTERMEDIATE SECTION, AND OUTWARDLY FLARING SIDES BETWEEN SAID INTERMEDIATE SECTION AND SAID FLANGES HAVING FACES TO SERVE AS CAMS AND SPACING LEGS, A MAGNET UNIT INCLUDING TWO POLE PLATES AND A MAGNET DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID PLATES, SAID U-SHAPED SECTION HAVING AN UPPER INTERMEDIATE PORTION, SAID POLE PLATES HAVING CENTRAL INDENTATIONS FORMING INWARDLY EXTENDING PROJECTING PORTIONS, SAID MAGNET HAVING A CENTRAL OPENING 